The House Has Passed More Than $50 Billion In Sandy Aid, Despite Heavy Republican Opposition

The House of Representatives today passed a package of more than
$50 billion in Hurricane Sandy relief that will provide immediate
aid to disaster-stricken areas affected by Hurricane Sandy,
despite a flood of Republican opposition.

The final package passed
241-180. Only 49 Republicans voted for it, while 179 Republicans
and one Democrat voted against.

The bill was broken down into
an immediate $17 billion in aid and a contentious amendment to
add $33 billion in separate relief, which passed 228-192. Of the
"no votes," 190 were Republicans and two were Democrats. That
amendment nearly tripled the size of the original bill.

Combined with the $9.7 billion
bill the House passed on Jan. 4, the new package completes a
$60.2 billion aid plan for Hurricane Sandy victims — 79 days
after the storm hit the U.S.

Meanwhile, the House voted down
the so-called Mulvaney amendment to the bill, 258-162. The
amendment would have offset the $17 billion in aid witha 1.63 percent cut to all discretionary
appropriations in the 2013 budget.

Of the 162 voting in favor, 157
were Republicans and five were Democrats. Northeast lawmakers
worried that if the Mulvaney amendment passed in the House, it
could have complicated swift action in the Senate.

The House also rejected
amendments that would have pared down the spending in the
bill.

In a joint statement, New York
Gov. Andrew
Cuomo, New Jersey Gov. Chris
Christie and Connecticut Gov. Dannel Malloy praised the House
vote, though they chided its delay.

Here's their full
statement:

"We are grateful to those
members of Congress who today pulled together in a unified,
bipartisan coalition to assist millions of their fellow Americans
in New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut at their greatest time
of need. The tradition of Congress being there and providing
support for Americans during times of crisis, no matter where
they live across this great country, lives on in today’s vote in
the House of Representatives. We anticipate smooth passage when
this package moves back to the Senate for final approval and for
this long-awaited relief to finally make its way to our
residents."

Check below for a full
breakdown of the Sandy relief bill and why it serves as a litmus
test for fiscal conservatives.

ORIGINAL:

The House is set to vote today
on the second part of a Hurricane Sandy relief package that would
provide more than $50 billion in aid to devastated areas.

The vote is receiving some grumbles from fiscal conservatives and
outright opposition from conservative organizations like Heritage
Action and Club for Growth, both of which are urging members to
vote "no" on both the base bill and a $33.7 billion added by a
New Jersey lawmaker.

The House will first vote on the House Appropriations
Committee's base bill, which provides $17 billion in immediate
relief to disaster-stricken areas. Lawmakers are expected to add
a $33.7 billion amendment from Rep. Rodney
Frelinghuysen, which includes $10.9 billion for public
transportation projects.

But the vote could get complicated as the House considers a
slew of additional amendments — 12 more, to be exact.
Particularly, lawmakers representing Sandy's affected areas are
concerned about an amendment added by Reps. Mick
Mulvaney, R-S.C., Tom McClintock, R-Calif., Jeff Duncan, R-S.C.,
and Cynthia Lummis, R-Wyo.

As it stands, the Sandy relief bill does not include
spending cuts and, therefore, adds to the deficit. The so-called
"Mulvaney amendment" would offset the $17 billion in immediate
aid with a 1.63 percent cut to all discretionary
appropriations in the 2013 budget.

"I know how important the supplemental relief is to those
affected by Hurricane Sandy, but I believe we can provide that
relief while finding ways to pay for it, rather than adding to
the nation’s ballooning deficit,” Mulvaney said in a statement.
"Indeed, if we cannot come together under these tragic
circumstances to find a way to pay for this relief, do we
seriously believe we will have the political will to ever balance
the budget?"

"Disasters may be unpredictable, but we know with 100% certainty
that they will occur," Andy Roth, Club for Growth's vice
president of government affairs, said in a statement.

"Therefore, Congress shouldn't keep passing massive "emergency"
relief bills that aren't paid for, have little oversight, and are
stuffed with pork. Also, Congress shouldn't use disasters like
Hurricane Sandy as an excuse to spend billions on long-term
projects that should be considered during the regular
appropriations process."

It also could provide a glimpse into how firm conservatives are
on implementing spending cuts with sets of fiscal battles looming
on the debt ceiling, sequestration, and the government
appropriation bill over the next two months.